We’re going to try something new starting this month.
(Thanks to outagas for suggesting it.)

A “Recipe of the Month”!
(Soon to become “Meal of the Month”)

A suggested recipe from one of Steven's books will be posted and
we encourage you to try it and report back with any tips,
tricks or questions you may come up with during the
preparation as well as your thoughts on the results.

This month we’ll kick it all off with;
First Timers Ribs and Lemon Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce!

These recipes are posted on the home page.

Each month a new recipe will be suggested and an additional
course will be added until we come up with a full menu.
Appetizer, sides, dessert, etc.

We hope you will enjoy sharing your experiences with each other!

EDIT:

Wouldn't you know it, They've updated the homepage and moved our featured recipe!!

Sounds great. Is this going to be in one very long string or is there going to be a section to have each month listed separate?

I am thinking that if all of the monthly menu's are in one thread, that would be 12 a year, that it wouldn't take long for them to get buried, and lengthy for new members. That is why I was thinking on the lines of a major area, like the General Discussion, and then each month with all of the discussion would be under it....

Thanks for your thoughts, you raise a good point that I hadn't considered. As of right now, nothing is set and we are looking for ideas.

The method of choosing recipes and menus is still being worked out, I'd like to see prizes(!) and hope to get Mr. Raichlen to touch base to provide some advice or comments in the thread.

For this first time out, I'd like to see recipe variation ideas, cooking results and lots of pictures. I've got a 3-pack of baby backs in the deep freeze that will be used if the snow ever stops by the end of March.

As a way to keep the recipes straight, maybe a seperate "Recipe of the Month" section, with a thread for each recipe, especially if these go on longer than a year or so. That way you could go to the ROTM section and see March 07 - Ribs (with discussion), April 07 - Beans (with discussion), etc.

Has anyone made the First Timer's Ribs or used a mop sauce on another rib recipe? I've used a mop on butts & briskets, but don't recall using one on ribs. I'm curious of what affect the mop sauce has on the meat.

I did a variation of these ribs for my first attempt. Didn't follow the rub recipe exactly, and the mop was apple juice, soy sauce, and white wine vinegar. Just used a commercial sauce, too. Overall a good flavor, but the rub was a bit spicy for my son (but practically *anything* is too spicy, so don't let that fool you).

The idea for the mop is the same as for other meats: keep the meat moist and add a bit of flavor. I cooked the ribs for 45 minutes, then mopped every 20 minutes after that. Didn't add a strong flavor, but I could taste a hint of apple and a vinegar bite.

Well, the ribs are in the fridge soaking up the rub. I've got a small pork butt smoking as I type this. I used Steven's recipe for the rib rub and for the rub for the butt. Hopefully this will all turn out great. Will update later.

Well, the ribs are in the fridge soaking up the rub. I've got a small pork butt smoking as I type this. I used Steven's recipe for the rib rub and for the rub for the butt. Hopefully this will all turn out great. Will update later.

smoke eater

Way to go Smoke Eater. You should be the first one to post your results.

I am waiting for my ribs to defrost and hope to cook them on Sunday. I mixed the rub and really like it. The celery seed adds a distinct flavor that I haven't had in other rubs I've made.